Posted on 06/09/2013 11:41:17 AM PDT by sunmars
The individual responsible for one of the most significant leaks in US political history is Edward Snowden, a 29-year-old former technical assistant for the CIA and current employee of the defence contractor Booz Allen Hamilton. Snowden has been working at the National Security Agency for the last four years as an employee of various outside contractors, including Booz Allen and Dell.
The Guardian, after several days of interviews, is revealing his identity at his request. From the moment he decided to disclose numerous top-secret documents to the public, he was determined not to opt for the protection of anonymity. "I have no intention of hiding who I am because I know I have done nothing wrong," he said.
Snowden will go down in history as one of America's most consequential whistleblowers, alongside Daniel Ellsberg and Bradley Manning. He is responsible for handing over material from one of the world's most secretive organisations – the NSA.
In a note accompanying the first set of documents he provided, he wrote: "I understand that I will be made to suffer for my actions," but "I will be satisfied if the federation of secret law, unequal pardon and irresistible executive powers that rule the world that I love are revealed even for an instant."
(Excerpt) Read more at guardian.co.uk ...
Reads an awful lot like a movie, or a Tom Clancy novel.
When I first saw his picture for a brief second I though it was a young Michael Douglas.
Disloyal to his security clearance? In the face of gross disregard for the Constitutional system of government?
Good God, do you not realize how asinine that sounds?
Or the Bourne movies.
Yeah.
June 9, 2013
Booz Allen can confirm that Edward Snowden, 29, has been an employee of our firm for less than 3 months, assigned to a team in Hawaii. News reports that this individual has claimed to have leaked classified information are shocking, and if accurate, this action represents a grave violation of the code of conduct and core values of our firm. We will work closely with our clients and authorities in their investigation of this matter.
June 9, 2013
Booz Allen can confirm that Edward Snowden, 29, has been an employee of our firm for less than 3 months, assigned to a team in Hawaii. News reports that this individual has claimed to have leaked classified information are shocking, and if accurate, this action represents a grave violation of the code of conduct and core values of our firm. We will work closely with our clients and authorities in their investigation of this matter.
So is Snowden the new Pamela Landy, lol?
Hiccup, sorry for the double post
I think this may be an important point. An NSA agent defected to China and he is being hero-worshipped. The crown jewel of our intel services has been exposed, and the guy exposing it has gone over to the people who will know exactly what to do with his expertise.
this very well could be the scandal that starts undoing the Obama Presidency.
He is in the process of negotiating something with China to do with their hacking of our communications. He may simply negotiate away our ability to track their communications, while they are learning exactly how it works and how to turn the tables. And when he does, he'll recover his own hero-status with his leftist base. There may then be article after article extolling his brave decision to shut down our most important surveillance program. I can't help but think we're being had in a big way.
Sorry, I just refuse to believe what you’re saying unless you give me proof.
SHOW ME THE MONEY! Lol.
Meanwhile, don’t you think there’s a real political opportunity here?
If we all try to stay on the reservation here, we could reap some fairly significant political gains.
Sure they could but that is not his problem. His problem will be trying to stay alive.
“Is there any way the House could grant him some sort of immunity from prosecution?”
You’re assuming there’s a critical mass of uncorrupt people in the house. There isn’t. Even the Rs have their secrets they don’t want out.
Report to a Congressman? A black hole. Nobody listens to Congress. British rags, OTOH, are a different story.
That’s why I put a question mark on the suggestion. The man doesn’t have a friend in any government in the world.
Except the republicans are defending this database just as much as the dims are trying to run from it.
An instructive look might find that these pubbies have constituents, and more importantly donors, deeply involved in these endeavors.
Think about John Roberts and changing his opinion on Obamacare.
Think about Christe and his open arms for Obama. Think about his not appointing a Republican Senator for the rest of the open term.
Think about Gramnsity going along with all the data gathering.
Think.. It is all different when you consider they have data that everyone can destroyed even if some of it is manufactured.
Think about Rand Paul.... He has to be pretty clean.
Good Hunting... from Varmint Al
Snowden was trying out for Special Forces but had both legs broken during that attempt. In general, you will find very few with a purely “liberal” worldview in the Special Forces community. You find far more Libertarians or conservatives. You will find Zero Left wing Loon Code Pinko types.
I think the guy is a hero in the vein of all great Patriots: “I regret I have but one life to give for my country”.
What’s been going on violates the constitution and every vision and founding principal of this nation. Mass violation of an entire nation’s civil right to things like trampling the 4th amendment is tantamount to Crimes Against Humanity because of the scale of the crimes.
There is actually a petition already formed for the 100k in signatures required for the WH to have to respond to it - demanding an immediate pardon for Snowden. I would vote for this guy for President or any office. He shows he has a level of integrity, honor, consciousness and loyalty to the constitution that I can trust.
Taking the side of Obama in this is taking the side of tyranny. Big, out of control, arrogant, dismissive government is dangerous. How many times do we have to learn this lesson?
Except the republicans are defending this database just as much as the dims are trying to run from it.
An instructive look might find that these pubbies have constituents, and more importantly donors, deeply involved in these endeavors.
Exactly. This the Just For Me GOP cleaning the kenyans backside to keep their big money donors on the govt gravy train.
The beltway GOP could care less about the constitutional rights of those living on main street.
Listening to Peter King on Fox right now. Sickening.
Disloyal to his security clearance? In the face of gross disregard for the Constitutional system of government?
Good God, do you not realize how asinine that sounds?
To date, we have little distinction between a DB of phone company metadata and a phone book. You wouldn’t prevent the cops from using a phone book, or would you?
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